IAB Canada Releases NEW! 2010 Guide To Canadian Colleges + Universities
Featuring Interactive Advertising Courses And Curriculum - Another Industry
First!

TORONTO, April 8 /CNW/ - The Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada today released its 2010 Guide To Canadian Colleges + Universities Featuring Interactive Advertising Courses And Curriculum, the first comprehensive look at how various educational institutions across Canada compare with respect to providing programs for students interested in entering the Interactive Marketing + Advertising industry.

A year in the making, IAB Canada's 2010 Guide To Canadian Colleges + Universities contains both one-page and individual summaries of how various Colleges and Universities compare with respect to course availability in 10 key areas including:

    
    -  Interactive Marketing Strategy + Tactics (Display, Email, Search,
       Video, Social Media and Mobile Marketing)
    -  Interactive Media Planning + Buying
    -  Website/Interactive Ad Design
    -  Basic Programming (HTML/or Flash)
    -  Advanced Programming (HTML, Flash, Java, C++, etc.)
    -  Web Analytics
    -  Advertising Program Project Management
    -  Emerging Platforms (3D/Gaming)
    -  Emerging Platforms (Mobile)
    -  Ad Serving
    

The Guide - presented in an Excel format - is easy to use. For example, students looking to become experts in the Online Gaming area, simply click on either the College or University Summary tabs to find schools with Course availability in the Emerging Platforms (3D/Gaming) area. Students can then click over to the individual informational tabs for each school in order to see a listing of relevant Courses, and to read important notes about them. Within each school's informational tab, students can also click on any link, and be transported - not just to the school's homepage - but directly to the Webpage that describes that school's individual Emerging Platforms (3D/Gaming) Course or Curriculum.

"There are three distinct audiences for IAB Canada's 2010 Guide To Colleges + Universities," says Paula Gignac, President, IAB Canada. "First and foremost, the Guide is meant to assist students who are interested in Interactive Marketing + Advertising, and who are currently in the process of choosing undergraduate programs for 2011 and beyond. Second, the Guide is designed for businesses that are looking to hire in this area, and need to understand where they might find the best recruits for their organizations. Finally, the Guide can be used by any of the 103 Colleges and Universities reviewed within, to help plan Interactive Advertising Curriculum going forward."

At this time, IAB Canada's 2010 Guide To Canadian Colleges + Universities Featuring Interactive Advertising Courses And Curriculum highlights undergraduate programs and courses only, and only provides an assessment of the quantity NOT the quality of relevant Courses available in each school.

"Obviously, being able to assist students in understanding not just where there are Courses, but where those Courses and Curriculum are providing exceptional learning opportunities, is a place we want to get to," says Gignac. "We'll aim to do that in future iterations of the Guide, and identify post-graduate study opportunities in the 10 interactive areas as well."

"In the meantime, IAB Canada's short-term goal is to assist Colleges + Universities across Canada in creating Interactive Advertising Curriculum that will help their students secure employment in an industry that topped $1.6 billion in annual advertising revenue in 2008; that may reach $1.75 billion when 2009 revenue reports are tabulated; and is struggling to find qualified people to fill positions that have arisen in response to the increased ad spend."

"Like our recently released Interactive Advertising Salary Guide, we know that what we've created for Colleges + Universities is also merely Version 1.0 of a document and a program that will grow in 2010 and beyond," says Gignac.

"We welcome any and all feedback on our 2010 Guide To Canadian Colleges + Universities Featuring Interactive Advertising Courses And Curriculum, and would like to take this opportunity to thank the Member volunteers who helped us complete the Guide, and also the educators who have already taken the time to review and polish our work to date."

    
    Download IAB Canada's 2010 Guide To Canadian Colleges + Universities
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    Featuring Interactive Advertising Courses And Curriculum Now!
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    www.iabcanada.com/guidelines/IABCanada_2010CollegesUniversitiesGuide.xls
    

NOTE: IAB Canada's 2010 Guide To Canadian Colleges + Universities Featuring Interactive Advertising Courses And Curriculum is available in English only at this time.

Want To Learn More About Interactive Marketing + Advertising?

IAB Canada offers industry-leading certification through our Intensive One-Day Courses in Interactive Marketing + Advertising, Paid Search Marketing and Social Media Marketing, with NEW! Courses in Search Engine Optimization and Mobile Marketing to come! See www.iabcanada.com/events/courses.shtml for more information.

The Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada (www.iabcanada.com), is the national voice and de facto thought leader of the Canadian Interactive marketing and advertising industry, and is a not-for-profit association representing more than 225 of Canada's most well-known and respected Advertisers, Agencies, Media Companies, Service Associates, Educational Institutions and Government Associations.

For further information: about IAB Canada contact Paula Gignac, President, IAB Canada, www.iabcanada.com or at [phone] (ext. 26)